K Mathai - another award-worthy officer

The transfer of BBMP advertisement wing's assistant commissioner K Mathai, who exposed illegal a Rs 2,000-crore advertisement scam, has raised many eyebrows and activists are asking if the officer was being punished. The BBMP council on Tuesday decided to transfer him as deputy commissioner of the markets wing and the order was issued on Wednesday.

The moves just a few days after Mathai submitted an inquiry report highlighting involvement of some senior officers in the scam. The report pointed out that the officers were encouraging advertisers to violate bylaws pertaining to the size and locations of advertisements.

- - - it seems many elected representatives, in both ruling and opposition camps of the council, have joined forces to elbow him out of the advertising department. Many officials are suspected to have colluded to get him out.

- - - Mathai said he doesn't find a reason why he should have been transferred. "I am an officer and just a reporting authority. I will continue to do by job and even at the Markets wing there are enough scams to look into," he said.

For the full text of the report (emphasis added by me) in the ToI, click here.

The purpose of my posting this blog is both to let Mr Mathai, as also the Corporators and senior officials, know that the citizens are taking note of all of these happenings, and making judgments accordingly. In fact, St Peter, who guards the gates to heaven, collects his info from praja.in :)))

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Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Deputy Commissioner K Mathai has suggested that the state government recommend a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the illegal advertisement hoarding scam.

Over the last eight years, the scam has caused a loss of at least Rs 2,000 crore to the civic body and senior officials are involved in this, he said in his eighth and final report submitted to Bengaluru Development Minister K J George. Since July 2015, Mathai has submitted eight reports to the Lokayukta and other senior officials in the BBMP. In his reports, he has pointed out that the BBMP has lost at least Rs 2,000 crore of advertisement tax in the last eight years.

The civic agency, which is collecting Rs 20-30 crore a year, is capable of collecting Rs 300-500 crore a year, he said in a report.

In one of his reports, he even said that at Shantalanagar ward in Shanthinagar Assembly constituency, the Palike can collect Rs 3.96 crore against Rs 15 lakh collected annually. In fact, he and his team proved it by collecting around Rs 3 crore in 45 days.

For the full text of the report in the New Indian Express, click here.

The question that arises is what justification is there to BBMP's proposed 20 to 25% property tax increases, when it just can't get down to plugging the revenue leaks (when close to 90% is being lost, it can't actually called a leak; it's plain loot) pointed out in the above report, apart from the collection inefficiency pointed out in the Citizen matters report, accessible here.

Incidentally, Shanthinagar Assembly constituency is where the admirers of the local MLA have a penchant for expressing their admiration for the neta, for every event connected to him, by putting up larger than life hoardings - check here. Is it any surprise then that such loot goes on unchecked?

The state government has transferred K Mathai, a senior KAS officer, from Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), to his parent department — Department of Personal and Administrative Reforms (DPAR) — pending disciplinary action, on Tuesday.

- - - The order issued on Tuesday removing him from the services of BBMP said that the state government took this decision based on communication from the Commissioner. It reads: “The Commissioner of BBMP, in his letter to the government on April 13, wrote that K Mathai, assistant commissioner, is giving the media statements about the activities at advertisement department without directions from standing committee or from the higher officers... He is trying to tarnish higher officers’ image and because of this the institution is facing embarrassment.”

Mathai said, “I submitted eight reports about the advertisement mafia and in the eighth report, I mentioned senior IAS officers’ involvement and that irked officers. They can take disciplinary action, but there is law and I am also going to fight.”

For the full text of the report (emphasis added by me) in the New Indian Express, click here.

That's the spirit, Sir. We salute you. It's officials like you who engender hope in the citizens that things can eventually turn for the better.

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